


I can barely recall...

by MaryShimy



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, On Repeat, Time Loop, Unrequited Love, god help them
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2020-10-19 23:53:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20665883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaryShimy/pseuds/MaryShimy
Summary: There’s this thing called time loops. It means you’re stuck in the same span of time, reliving it over and over again. That isn’t what this story is about.There’s also event loops. Its means simply reliving the same event over and over again until you get it right. That could be what this story is about.What is this story about? It could be a dream, it could be a warning, it could be a vision. No one knows, but at the very least… Adrien is aware that something odd is going on as he keeps living through similar situations over and over again, not sure if they are deja-vu, wishful thinking or life trying to send him a message.But every morning when he wakes up, it feels as though it was nothing more than a dream. But why?





	1. Evillustrator

**Author's Note:**

> This is going to be a big project in which I rewrite (so far) 17 episodes. There could be more. Is partly inspired by Oblivio, the rabbit's time traveling power and (now) the snake's time powers.  
You'll understand, and you might hate me. And I'll laugh. 
> 
> **IMPORTANT NOTE: I'm doing them in production order. If you strongly believe (and can defend your statement) that it should be done in 'episode' order, then let me know. But warning, I will be doing a big edit on the two established chapters due to them being in opposite order.   
Prod Order says Evillustrator goes before Lady Wifi. Episode order says vice-versa.  
This becomes an even bigger issue later, so make your word known NOW. **
> 
> HAVE FUN!

Chat was groaning internally, trying to stay true to his morals and not treat Chloe how he really wanted to treat her at the moment. He’s a hero, he can’t haul her on his shoulders and throw her off her window just because she keeps demanding he do her homework. But her attitude was wearing his patience very thin. 

Luckily Ladybug called right as he was about to give Chloe some colorful words. Walking outside, he answered, a joyful sigh escaping him as he heard her voice, a wonderful contrast to Chloe’s indignant orders, “You can't just fly out of here and then decide to make cat calls, my Lady!”

“I’m sorry, but we were wrong. Chloe’s not the target. Marinette Dupain-Cheng is his real target. He’s in love with her and he promised her he wouldn’t harm Chloe if she went to his birthday party. Protect Marinette.” Immediately she hung up. 

Marinette huh. What did the Evillustrator want with Marinette? And how did Ladybug know to go to her? Was the Evillustrator there, and Lady followed him? 

“Chat! Cha- oh, there you are! When are you going to get start-”

Chat bit his tongue, bid adieu and ran out of there as fast as he could. 

Arriving at Marinette’s house, he found Sabrina leaving, angry at a confused Marinette. He waited until she was out of sight to drop in, startling the already confused girl. Seeing the opportunity to talk to Marinette as not-Adrien, he tested the waters to see how she reacted. 

“Woo! A little bit longer and I was also going to have you save you from her. But don’t worry. You’re safe as long as I’m around,” He grabbed her hand, placing a soft kiss on it and looking up mischievously, “The name’s Chat, by the way, Chat Noir, at your service.” He had looked up just in time to see a look of mock and disbelief get briefly replaced by fake admiration. He’s seen it before when she pretends to have the patience for Chloe. 

He shrugged it off, and stood up straight as she nodded, looking a bit uncomfortable, sounding as such, “Uh, yeah… I know. I see the news. I’m Marinette.”

They stared at each other in silence, Chat’s kind and peaceful as he smiled genuinely at her, Marinette’s uncomfortable and confused, very clear in her smile as she bit her inner lips. Chat still holding her hand. 

She nodded, at her limit of awkwardness, “So… What are you doing here?”

He smiled, confused, wondering how Ladybug knew Marinette’s in danger if neither her nor Evillustrator were here. Not even Marinette knew she was in danger. “Oh, it’s about the Evillustrator, he-”

“Came here and asked me to go to his birthday party. His real name is Nathaniel, he’s a friend of mine. And I now believe he has a crush on me. I agreed to go, believing it was safer that way.” She quickly added, smiling as though she was blessing him with all the answers. He couldn’t help but think of Ladybug when she’s figured out how to use her Lucky Charm and how to defeat the akumas. 

Chat nodded, “Well, worry not. I’m here to make it even safer. All you need to do is take…” It was then he realized he still didn’t know where the akuma was, but he knew Marinette could use his trust of her to take it. He took a wild guess, feeling too obvious but also, like it was the best option, “Take his drawing pen, stylus or whatever. Get it as far away from him and if you can, break it. I’ll be close by to rescue you immediately.”

She smiled brightly, slightly fake, “Of course! Thank you so much!” 

He smiled, nodding and turned around to leave, noticing in the corner of his eye Marinette rolling hers. What- Why? Why was Marinette acting like she knew more than he did? Why did it feel like she did? Like she was the one controlling the situation? Where is Ladybug?

Later he watched as Marinette climbed onto the boat at the Seine with the Evillustrator, and he watched from the shadows, doubting more by the second that Ladybug was going to show up. Meanwhile Marinette was all fake laughs and fake smiles as she tried flirting with the Evillustrator in to getting him to give her his pen. It took a while. Long enough for Ladybug to show up, except she didn’t. 

Instead he got an itch on his leg, moved it a bit and alerted Evillustrator of his presence, and in the minute he yelled at Marinette and ran off towards him he saw Marinette’s annoyed face, looking like she sort of expected him to mess up. It was beginning to feel like Marinette knew him better than could be possible. And his suspicious grew bigger as he ran towards her, deciding it more important to find a place to keep her safe, and she immediately prepared herself to be picked up by him. 

Why was she acting like this was routine? Why was she acting like she knew every single one of his moves and countermoves? Where. Is. Ladybug?

After getting trapped by the Evillustrator and being freed by Marinette’s genius, Chat began to feel like he also knew her moves and countermoves. Because he’d seen them on someone else. Someone who still wasn’t showing her face. And as he ran off after the Evillustrator and climbed on a gabled roof, he hid behind a chimney, making it seems as though he was gone. And he knew he shouldn’t do this, but it was beginning to irk him how much the girl he was saving was acting like the girl that was M.I.A. And it made sense if his suspicions were true. 

Ladybug wouldn’t be able to be here if…

He was watching as Marinette looked around, talking to air, it seemed, before she opened her purse and smirked at the flying red orb. She motioned in his direction before transforming and confirming his suspicions. 

As she pulled herself with her yo-yo in his direction and followed the path of the Evillustrator, he circled the chimney, avoiding her sight, still in shock.

Ladybug wouldn’t be able to be here if she was Marinette, because she can’t be in two places at once. 

Chat sat there for a few minutes but it felt like hours as he processed it. And the more he processed it, the more it made sense. Everything that happened that day made sense. Lady’s distaste for Chloe, Lady immediately knowing Marinette was ‘in trouble’, Lady not being there with the person they should be protecting, Marinette being irritated by his flirting, Marinette knowing his every move… 

He now felt like he dug too deep in Wikipedia and learned too much, and now he didn’t know what to do with what he learned. It was all worthless. He couldn’t tell either that he betrayed their trust and stayed behind just to watch her transform on the hunch that she was Ladybug. He promised he wouldn’t pry. 

Quickly, he picked himself up, remembering the akuma was still out there, if the boat is any indication, and Lady needed his help. Arriving at the scene a few minutes late, he found Lady mid fight and close to taking his pen away. He jumped into the fray, playing distraction, because, honestly, with how off he was at the moment, there was no way he would be able to play offense. 

Distracted as he was, it took a lot of hits and one nasty drop to the floor below that fractured the ankle that was chained to the weighted ball that pulled him down, before Ladybug managed to destroy the akuma and clean up the entire mess. The magic pulled him up to Chloe’s room and healed his ankle, though later, he’ll wish it had remained fractured, as a reminder. 

He watched quietly as Ladybug kindly approached Nathaniel and told him it would all be okay, even if Marinette didn’t reciprocate his feelings, all while asking Chloe to apologize for mocking him about it. Technically, Nathaniel should… still ask Marinette if she did reciprocate his feelings because Ladybug shouldn’t know. But Ladybug sounded so sure that even if Chat didn’t know the truth he would had believed her. But knowing the truth, he could see how Marinette was avoiding that conversation in her civilian form by nipping it in the bud here. 

He faked a smile as Lady approached him for their ‘pound it’ and watched as she flew away. He remained frozen, staring at the spot she was just at, before Nathaniel and Chloe snapped him out of it, asking him about the beeping. He apologized and ran away, barely making it to his room as his transformation wore off. 

And again he was frozen, staring at the computer screens where Lady’s face remained as a reminder of what happened. 

“You ok, kid?”

Adrien looked up at Plagg, who for the first time looked unsure of… everything. 

He shook his head, “I don’t know Plagg, like…” Plagg grimaced as Adrien looked around for a way to express what he was feeling, “What do I do now? No matter what, I broke her trust. If I ignore it, I won’t be able to ignore it. Because I’ll go to school, see Marinette and be reminded of it and I’m a model, not an actor, she’ll be able to tell something’s wrong. If I talk to her… do I do it as Adrien and immediately confess? Do I do it as Chat? Either way she’ll be angry. And-”

“Breath, kid.” Plagg rushed out loudly as he zoomed to his face, holding on to his nose and looking into his eyes, “You’re right. There’s no easy solution to this. Either way, it will be an uncomfortable situation and in all situations there’s a high chance she’ll be mad. But you’re a team, kid. You’ll make it through. You’ve survived worse. Just,” Plagg pulled away, flying towards his pillow, “Sleep the worry away for now. And take it one day at a time.” 

Adrien nodded, changing into his sleepwear and crawling into bed with Plagg, using the swishes of Plagg’ tail to calm himself down and lull himself to sleep. He was almost gone when he heard Plagg whisper.

“Take it one day at a time, kid, because it’ll only get worse.”

Adrien woke up half an hour later than he should have, and barely made it on time for class. 

As he sat down, he took a deep breath that was quickly interrupted by Nino joking about his lateness. Their jokes were interrupted by Alya and Marinette, running in, even later. The boys smiled at them as they sat down and as Marinette walked past him, Adrien couldn't help but feel like he forgot to tell her something. 

He saw her smile shyly at him as she sat down. 

… 

He shrugged it off.


	2. Lady Wifi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's so cold...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't get used to quick coming chapters. I had these pre-written and together they help get the vibe of what's going on. 
> 
> ENJOY!!

It was cold. So cold. Too cold.

Ladybug was fighting alone out there, Plagg was out of commission due to the cold and he couldn’t find his ring.

And it was only getting colder. 

Touching the shelves hurt his fingers, touching the ground, the food, anything hurt him. He could hear Ladybug struggling to open his door. She used her Lucky Charm… time is short. But he couldn’t get up. Everytime he unwinded from his slightly warm fetal position he felt needles prickling every inch of his skin and his arms always bound back to hide between his knees. 

He glimpsed inside his shirt to see Plagg shaking viciously, trying to absorb any heat from Adrien. He’s too small, there’s no way he’ll last that much longer in this cold. Adrien himself didn’t think he’d last longer in this cold with how poorly he was dressed. 

Pressed against the wall, wrapped into fetal position he saw the glow of the ring hidden beneath the shelf in the corner.

He heard Ladybug close to the door urging something to work faster. 

He needed to work faster. He needed to suck in the pain, put his cold hands on the frozen ground and crawl to the ring. But it hurt. It hurt so much. He barely moved to steps closer before he crumbled to the ground, hiding his hands inside his outer shirt and curling back into the fetal position. He looked back at the ring and gave a sad sigh regretting it immediately. 

“I-I-I-...” He closed his eyes. He didn’t believe these freezers were supposed to be this cold and he knew luck wasn’t on his side. Foul play was definitely involved and he didn’t doubt for a second that Hawkmoth wanted his ring and he didn’t care if he had to pry it off Adrien’s frozen fingers to get it. 

“M- … S-so-... ry… P- ag.” Every sound hurt his lips. 

Plagg gave a small whine, being smarter. 

He was looking at the ring when Ladybug opened the door. 

He didn't see her, but he heard her freeze, taking it in with a gasp before quickly snapping out of it and almost closing the door behind her for his privacy. 

He refused to move, even when Lady stepped over him, crouching into his line of sight and softly brushing his cheek. She probably wanted to make sure he was still alive. Adrien couldn’t remember the last time he blinked, after a while that started hurting too. But he was breathing if the pain in his lungs was any indication. 

Once she saw him spontaneously start shaking when the cold hit him again, she nodded and looked around, maybe looking for Chat Noir, maybe looking for a solution.

It hurt. The cold hurt. But nonetheless he painfully dragged an arm out of his shirt and dropped it in the direction of the ring. He thanked all the gods for Ladybug’s intuitive nature as she immediately looked in the direction he ‘pointed’ and scurried to get his ring.

She quickly crawled back to him, grabbing his hand and putting the ring back on regardless of his muttered complaints. The ring was frozen cold, and it hurt. 

She pushed his arm back to his chest and pulled him into her arms as she tried to give him even a little bit of strength to transform. 

“There’s a camera out there… Everyone who’s watching knows Chat Noir and only Chat Noir entered this freezer… You need to transform before you get out.” She sounded shocked and panicked as she whispered to him, rubbing his arms and using her body to warm him up. 

“I’m- … So-”

“Not now. I’m still trying to understand. Just focus.” 

He nodded, hands shaking as he pulled Plagg out, handing the sleeping kitten to Ladybug. 

Plagg remained in her hand for a few seconds before she muttered a curse, “Uh… Fuck it,” and threw him through the gap on the door to the warm kitchen. “They won’t understand what they are seeing. Hopefully he’ll wake up before Hawkmoth realizes and sends Wifi back.”

Ladybug pulled Adrien even more into her lap, trying to cover him entirely with her own body as they both attentively watched Plagg move in his sleep before finally waking up, clearly confused, and clearly looking for Adrien. 

Adrien felt a little better, he recognized the warmth, but it still hurt. Nonetheless, “C-claws… out-t-t.” 

The suit didn’t make it better. Well… only in the way where now a little bit more of your body is now covered from the cold, but it was still not enough. He felt Ladybug unwrap from him, slip her hands under his armpits as she began to pull him out of the freezer. The closer to the kitchen he got the more he wanted to cry. 

Outside of the freezer now Ladybug kept him closer to the door, not wanting the change to be drastic fearing he might be suffering from hypothermia. He on the other hand wanted to be far away from the freezer. He did it slowly though, with her help. 

The entire time Ladybug barely took her eyes off of the camera symbol in the corner. He didn’t understand why until he remembered she had used her Lucky Charm. And suddenly, he felt alive again. 

Sound came back to him hard. He could hear the machinery working over time, clearly someone messed with the settings. He could hear his erratic, shaky breathing as he crawled near the active oven. And then he heard it, her earrings indicating she was going to detransform.

Pulling himself behind the warm, metallic kitchen island, he gave a glance to her, seeing the glow begins to emerge. Quickly he pulled her to him, she toppling over his shaky legs, barely hidden behind the island as Marinette took Ladybug’s place. Both with a face of horror. 

“Oh, the irony.” He felt warmer but it still came out shaky. 

She ignored him, pulling for her purse and quickly handing food to a tired looking kwami. 

He understood what she meant now. Needing to understand what was going on. Because in the erratic moment, he didn’t know if he could completely see the picture. He just saw her detransform, but still. Marinette was quiet. Ladybug was bold. Marinette was clumsy around him. Ladybug was not. Marinette was a leader to her classmates… so was Ladybug. 

Even with the confusion… it still felt right. Like he knew this. Like it should have been obvious…

Once the perky kwami picked herself up, Ladybug once again took Marinette’s place. 

Ladybug sneaked a glance at him, about to speak when Lady Wifi interrupted them. They had hidden for too long and she grew anxious. The talk would have to wait. 

Almost an hour later, Ladybug bid her goodbye to Alya, wishing her a safe trip home. 

None of them had used their special attack after coming back… 

Both of them stood there in silence, on the roof of Le Grand Paris. Chat stared at Ladybug’s back as she remained there, facing the direction in which Alya left, with the ghost of her goodbye on her raised hand. 

“I don’t know if I’m supposed to apologize. Everything could have been avoided.”

Her hand dropped as she shook her head, a resigned sigh leaving her as she turned around, “It’s natural. You were doing what you could in that situation. It’s natural. The human body can only handle so much.”

“You froze. I was in ice, and you were the one who froze.” It was ironic.

Neither of their voices raised to more than a whisper. She didn’t look at him, not his face, not his questioning eyes.

She bit her lip, hands tight in a fist, and he wondered how more was this his fault. 

“I’m sorry,” He didn’t understand why she apologized, “I was not… myself. I … I froze. In the worst place possible. I forgot where we were, what was going on…” Her voice dropped to barely audible as she whispered in shame, “I almost revealed myself to everyone…” 

She shook her head as a mocking laugh escaped her, “Because I couldn’t believe that you were Chat Noir, even though I saw it happen right in my arms.” She raised her eyes to look at him and found shame and embarrassment in his. 

“Didn’t like what you saw?” He hated how insecure he sounded.

“I don’t hate you. Don’t even begin to think that. I don’t hate Chat Noir, and lord I have no idea how you avoided the rumours but I sure as hell don’t hate Adrien…” She bit her lip again, giving him a once-over, “But it sure isn’t what I expected…” She laughed again, raising her hands to her eyes as she walked around in circles, “Hindsight is twenty-twenty, and damn… looking back it sure makes me feel like an idiot.”

“Why? Was I that obvious?”

She stopped, staring at him like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing… Was he really that obvious?

“Chat loves Ladybug.” She grimaced as she de-transformed, “Ladybug is Marinette.”

He flinched, getting a feeling he knew where she was headed.

“Marinette…” She sighed, “Marinette has had a massive crush on Adrien for the past… months? And… I believe his exact words about her were ‘she’s just a friend’...” 

He flinched again.

“Because he had a crush on Ladybug…” Her smile was mocking, him?… her? Both of them?

“Who rejected him, many times, because she had a crush on Adrien… Do you get what I’m getting at or should I go around again?”

He shook his head, “No no. I get it. We rejected each other, because we had a crush on each other. We shot our own feet.” 

“And now were here… can you tell me where here is?” 

Chat looked up to see Marinette’s confidence rapidly kindling away. He shrugged, “I don’t know. I guess we’ll have to look around and read the signs. It’d be dumb to assume so quickly… No matter how much I’d want to.”

He paused, hoping that he didn’t take the metaphor too far…

She looked a bit confused but nodded nonetheless, “So… Don’t want to confirm nor deny whether we both still like each other and whether we both want to be with each other, instead… you wanna see where this goes, now that we know?”

He nodded, a smile escaping him, “Or that, yeah. Straight to the point.”

She stared at him, a calm smile on her face, before finally, “Okay. I’d like that.” She looked around to see the entire city covered in the night’s glow, “I’ve got to go. I never really got home after school, any longer and my parents will issue an APB for me. Tikki.”

He nodded as the red kwami flew to Marinette’s face, “Same for me, if not a nationwide manhunt.” He knelt in his usual way, pressing a kiss to Marinette’s hand. “Until next time, my lady.”

“Tomorrow.” 

He stood up straight, confused.

“Tomorrow… I mean, you’re still going to school, right?” The pink glow engulfed her as Lady took her place.

He facepalmed and nodded, “See you tomorrow then.” 

She nodded, a smile on her face as she waved goodbye, “See you tomorrow.”

Arriving at his room he immediately took notice of all the posters on his computer wall. He had obsessed over one of his classmates. He began pulling them down, hoping she never got wind of their existence.

“Maybe you should leave them there.” 

He turned around, giving Plagg a confused stare, “What?”

He shrugged and flew away, muttering under his breath, “Save me the problem of having to explain that tomorrow.” 

Adrien watched Plagg hide in his cheese fridge. What did he mean, explain this tomorrow?

He shook his head, noticing the time. He’d been late to school too much already, and he had a long day tomorrow, so he needed to get to be early. And he was already late. 

Already settled in bed, he asked himself again, why would Plagg need to explain why he took the posters down tomorrow? 

It would be years before he finally figured it out.

The next morning at school, he walked into class, greeting Nino and Alya, and giving a kind smile to shy Marinette. 

He wondered why she was always so shy around him only. He should ask Nino later and see if he knows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you think there's a chapter where a reveal could of happened, feel free to tell me.
> 
> Current chapter list:  
SEASON 1: Evillustrator, Lady Wifi, Dark Cupid, Gamer, The Puppeteer and Volpina.  
SEASON 2: Fringtigale, Gorizilla, Dark Owl, Sandboy  
SEASON 3: Weredad, Oblivio, Desperada, Timetagger, Party crasher, Ladybug

**Author's Note:**

> Spread the message and share if you enjoyed it.  
Comments are appreciated, kudos are sweet.
> 
> For updates on my stories jeonsolar.tumblr


End file.
